NPR News Now - NPR News: 02-03-2025 11PM EST

Episode Date: February 4, 2025

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Matt Wilson spent years doing rounds at children's hospitals in New York City. I had a clip-on tie. I wore Heelys, size 11. Matt was a medical clown. The whole of a medical clown is to reintroduce the sense of play and joy and hope and light into a space that doesn't normally inhabit. Ideas about navigating uncertainty. That's on the TED Radio Hour podcast from NPR. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shae Stevens. Hours after pausing new terrorists on products from Mexico, President Trump announced a 30-day

pause on the 25 percent terrorist that the U.S. was going to impose on Canada. As NPR's Deepa Sivaram reports, the move followed a phone call between Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau. President Trump posted on his social media platform that the tariffs on Canada, which were supposed to go into effect on Tuesday, would be paused to see if an economic deal between the two countries could be reached. Trudeau also shared the news on social media and said Canada would invest $1.3 billion to enforce the U.S.-Canada border to help stop the flow of fentanyl, though only a tiny percentage of fentanyl that comes to the U.S. is through the northern border. Tariffs on Mexico were also given a 30-day pause after Mexican leader Claudia Sheinbaum

and Trump spoke and Mexico agreed to beef up security on the southern border. Deepa Sivaram, NPR News, The White House. Deepa Sivaram, NPR News, The White House. Federal law enforcement groups are urging Congress to stop a possible purge at the FBI. As NPR's Carrie Johnson reports, the job dismissals could disrupt the Bureau's work. The groups say the possible termination of thousands of FBI agents who worked on Capitol riot cases is creating a dangerous distraction.

Losing even some of those federal agents could imperil ongoing investigations and undermine the FBI's ability to support local authorities. The law enforcement groups say any review of agents should follow normal policy and give those agents due process. The FBI has been in turmoil since new temporary leaders in the Justice Department signaled they may want to fire agents who worked on sensitive cases. Carrie Johnson, NPR News, Washington. Venezuelan Americans are calling the Trump administration's policy change on Temporary

Protective Status, or TPS, a betrayal. From Miami, NPR's Greg Allen reports that the administration is proposing to end protections that shielded hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans from deportation. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem says renewing temporary protected status for more than 300,000 Venezuelans is, quote, contrary to the national interest. That comes as a blow to Venezuelans who came to the U.S. seeking refuge from the authoritarian Nicolas Maduro regime and now face possible deportation. Adelise Ferro, with the Venezuelan American Caucus, says her community is shocked and disappointed.

During the campaign, the elected officials from the Republican Party, they actually told us that it was not going to touch the documented people. TPS designations are generally six to 18 months, but repeated extensions are not uncommon. Greg Allen, NPR News, Miami. The Senate has confirmed oil and gas executive Chris Wright as energy secretary. Wright has been a vocal opponent of government efforts to curb climate change. This is NPR. A chunk of fuselage from an ill-fated American Airlines jet has been recovered from the Potomac River. Two Navy barges are aiding the salvage operation, which officials say could take days to complete.

The plane collided with a military helicopter near Reagan National Airport last Wednesday, killing 67 people. Remains of all but 12 of the victims have been recovered. A Gallup survey shows the number of Americans using cannabis has doubled over the last decade. But NPR's Brian Mann reports that it's still difficult for many Americans to find marijuana that's legally sourced with proper consumer protections. For a lot of people in the U.S., using cannabis feels as normal as drinking a glass of wine or beer. But a dozen years after states started legalizing recreational cannabis,

regulatory oversight is still a confusing patchwork. The drug is still illegal federally. And it's often difficult for consumers to distinguish between legal weed and cannabis produced by illegal growers and criminal gangs. Bo Hilmer studies marijuana markets for the Rand Corporation. When you move from prohibition to legalization, you know, it takes time to significantly reduce the size of the illegal market. Cannabis experts say they expect legal weed will eventually push out black market products.

Brian Mann, NPR News. A federal judge in Washington has issued a temporary restraining order against the Trump administration's effort to freeze funding for federal grants and other programs. The order expands a pause issued by the same court a week ago and gives the Office of Management and Budget until Friday to submit a status report on its compliance. This is NPR News. Hey, it's Robin Hilton is NPR News.